The new rail coach factory in Latur, in the backward Marathwada region of Maharashtra, will roll out coaches in 2019-20. The tendering process for building the factory has been completed and work will start within a month, Rajesh Agarwal, member, Rolling Stock, Railway Board, said. Indian Railways is investing `500 crore in this facility. Around 450 acres of land has been set aside by the Maharashtra state government for the coach factory.

This will be the second factory making rail coaches after Modern Coach Factory (MCF) in Raebareli. This rail coach factory in Latur will be on the lines of the MCF. The MCF would be manufacturing 1,500 coaches this year and go up to 3,000 coaches in two years. From next year, the MCF would be manufacturing metro, EMU, MEMU, aluminum body coaches and high-speed rail here, Agarwal said. MCF was in talks with Metro Rail companies such as Maha Metro, which is implementing metro projects in Nagpur and Pune for supplying metro coaches. We can make coaches for metro rail and this would be a more sustainable option for the metro networks, Agarwal said. It has got letter of intent for two rakes from Maha Metro, he said. Read more